OPEN DAY: Friday 17th November 2023.

Religious Eductation (RE)

Enhancing our spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

Religious Eductation (RE)

Intent

At Beetham CE Primary, we believe that it is important for all our pupils to learn from and about religion, so that they can understand the world around them. The aim of Religious Education in our school is to help children to acquire and develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and the other principal religions represented in Great Britain; to appreciate the way that religious beliefs shape life and behaviour, develop the ability to make reasoned and informed judgements about religious and moral issues and enhance their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

Religious Education is taught throughout the school in such a way as to reflect the overall aims, values, and ethos of the school. It plays an important role, along with all other curriculum areas, particularly PSHE, in promoting social awareness and understanding in our children. We encourage our pupils to ask questions about the world and to reflect on their own beliefs, values and experiences. We include and promote British values, ensuring that children are aware of their rights and responsibilities as UK citizens. Our curriculum is designed to encourage creativity, imagination, enquiry, debate, discussion and independence.

Implementation

We use the Blackburn Diocesan Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education as the basis for our curriculum, which promotes the study of the 5 principal religions represented in Britain: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism. From the syllabus it is required that:

In the Early Years Foundation Stage learners will follow the Chatterbox Units which encourage conversation through a box of varied and multi-faith artefacts.
In KS1 and KS2 – The units are taught 80:20 which is 80% Christianity and 20% Non-Christian faiths.

Pupils study how religions and beliefs relate to each other, recognising both similarities and differences within and between them. They are encouraged to reflect on the significance of interfaith dialogue and the important contribution religions and faith can make to combating prejudice and discrimination. Children are encouraged to be tolerant and accepting towards people with different beliefs and views to their own.

We value the religious background of all members of the school community and hope that this will encourage individuals to share their own experiences with others freely. All religions and their communities are treated with respect and sensitivity and we value the links, which are, and can be made between home, school, and a faith community. We are extremely lucky that the vicar and other members of the local church, St Michael and all Angels, regularly visit our school to lead Worship and work with the children in a range of different ways.

We acknowledge that each religion studied can contribute to the education of all our pupils.We promote teaching in Religious Education that stresses open enquiry and first-hand experiences wherever possible for both staff and children.

Impact

The children at Beetham CE Primary enjoy learning about other religions and why people choose or choose not to follow a religion. They can clearly articulate their personal beliefs, ideas, values and experiences while respecting the rights of others to differ. Through their R.E. learning, the children are able to make links between their own lives and those of others in their community and in the wider world, developing an understanding of other people’s cultures, beliefs and ways of life.

Supporting Religious Eductation (RE) Documents

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